The TRUTH about Sports

After an off-season of turmoil which included the Reggie Bush saga, NCAA sanctions and the Lane Kiffin circus, we can finally collectively exhale and prepare ourselves for the USC Trojans’ season opener in Hawaii on Thursday, September 2, 2010. For most of you who think that the season’s a waste because they can’t play a bowl game, THINK AGAIN! The Trojans are still in contention to win the Pac-10; favorites in my book. I’m hoping that phenom quarterback Matt Barkley puts last season behind him and takes that step towards greatness. If freshman running back Dillon Baxter gets his head out of his ass, this kid could be the best back in the country. I’m glad that Kiffin suspended him for the Warriors’ game. Baxter is going to be around a few more years and you gotta show them that no one is bigger than the team, the school, or the game. Don’t make the same mistake Pete Carroll and company made with Reggie Bush. I hope Kiffin is the right guy for this job, though. With a surrounding cast consisting of father Monty and Ed Orgeron, this season’s going to be more exciting than last years’.

Keep moving moves, nothing to see here. Nothing special about this team other than an inexperienced TRUE freshman quarterback, an overrated defense, and throw in a lovable players coach. I’m not dogging on USC’s history, but I’m gonna hammer the present. The Trojans got their asses kicked by the Oregon Ducks. The same Ducks that lost their starting running back to suspension after the first game. What the hell is going on here? Many people said that the Trojans weren’t prepared, they didn’t come to play. The truth of the matter is that this team isn’t the team they used to be. Matt Barkley hasn’t arrived yet. He hasn’t had a jaw dropping game this season. He missed receiver after receiver. The defense has allowed at leat 27 points in each of the last 3 games. Frankly, the playmakers aren’t there YET, on both offense and defense. Sure they have a bunch of blue-chip talent on the field but these guys aren’t gelling. Watching the Ducks yesterday, they moved the ball anywhere they wanted. It’s gonna be at least another year before Barkley plays 1/2 as good as people have been hyping him up. As for the rest of the Trojans, sad. Wasted loss in the beginning of the year at Washington. I knew this was gonna be a tough game for SC. They’ve had problems winning in Oregon, whether it be the Ducks or the Beavers, for the past 3 years. Anyhow, looks like the “whogiveacrap” bowl for the USC Trojans this year, whoopdittedoo!

How bad is quarterback Aaron Corp? This guy was the starter for the Trojans about a months and a half ago. He lost his starting job when he injured his knee and the Trojans inserted freshman pheno Matt Barkley. Because of an injury to Barkley, in comes Corp, against an unranked Washington squad, 13-22 and 1 pick, no tds. Let me tell you, this guy can’t play worth shit. He shouldn’t have been playing the second half. I’ll take my chances with Mustain (who seems to be in Pete Carroll’s doghouse) or even an injured Barkley. Corp underthrew, overthrew and just fucked up the game. Worst performance of an SC quarterback I’ve seen in years. How this guy was a bluechip prospect, I have no idea.

How bad is Joe McKnight? A few years ago, when the news of Joe McKnight committing to SC was anounced, everyone had a hard-on for this guy. The next Reggie Bush (college, not NFL)!!! McKnight fumbled twice in the game (luckily SC recovered). He had decent yards, 11 carries for 100 yards, but for god’s sake, make a freakin’ play when your team needs it. McKnight was quoted in the preseason in saying that he wanted to play both offense and defense. At this point, he’s not even the best RB on his team. After the game, he said “Washington wasn’t the better team, they just outplayed us.” Huh? Guess what moron, they were the better team today. I’ll tell you one thing, they showed up to play against SC. Sorry ass McKnight.

How bad is Pete Carroll? Before anyone jumps on me, I know, blah blah blah 7 years Pac-10 title. I don’t wanna hear it. How many times does SC have to lose to an unranked team. It happens every year. I knew they would lose this year, but this wasn’t the game. Maybe at Cal, maybe at Oregon, maybe even UCLA? I think that Mr. Carroll needs to rethink his motivational speeches and start worrying about his team showing for a full season (as opposed to only the big games). As for his play calling, how about a roll out for Corp to get the guy some confidence? How about a run up the middle with that hoss Allen Bradford instead of a Havili rush or a run to the side instead of the freakin’ gut?

How bad are the SC wide receivers? So bad that they haven’t had a receiving touchdown since week 1? So bad that I bet you can’t even name them. So bad that the second leading receiver of the game was the fullback and the leading receiver only had 40 yards.

I’m just venting, this was a nauseating loss. Bad playcalling on both offense and defense. Good for Huskies coach Steve Sarkissian. Big win for their program. Another mind-boggling loss for SC.

So much for cold feet. Not that USC’s pounding of San Jose State was that big of a feat (56-3 to be exact), but after losing many of their starters from last year, some people were worried as to how this game would pan out. Rushing attack, re-god-damn-diculous, 6 tds on the ground for a total of 342 rushing yards. WOW! Passing game, nothing spectacular, but the true freshman quarterback Matt Barkley did was he was supposed to do… make no mistakes. 15/19, 233 yds, 1 TD and not picks. And that defense, how about holding the Spartans to a stingy 3 points. Glad backup/ex-starter Aaron Corps got some reps in to show everyone what he’s got: 4/4, 45 yds 1 TD and again, no picks. The biggest game of the season comes next week at the Shoe in Ohio State. We all saw what they did to the Buckeyes last year but this is gonna be a little different. If the Trojans can establish the run early, go up by double digits, them Buckeyes can kiss their National Championship Dreams goodbye. Anyone saw the rought time the Buckeyes had against Navy this weekend. Well the Trojans aren’t the Navy, they’re the entire armed forces. FIGHT ON!!!

Who is Jacquizz Rogers? Well, maybe you should ask the former #1 ranked team in the country, the USC Trojans. On Thursday night, they traveled to Corvallis to play the Oregon State Beavers. That’s the unranked Oregon State Beavers. The so called “best defense” in the country was shit on by Beavers running back Jacquizz Rogers; 186 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns. 5’6, 180 lb freshman runningback. I’ve never been so disgusted before in my life. The defense couldn’t stop anything. It seemed that every time O-State ran the ball in the first half, they got a first down. They even missed a gimmie interception in the endzone. Don’t even get me started with the Trojan offense. Steve Sarkissian was just as guilty with those stupid “direct halfback snaps” that seemed to work for the Miami Dolphins over the weekend. Horrible play-calling led to this mostrous upset (SC was favored by 25). As for “super” Joe McKnight, how do 7 carries for 10 yards sound? National Championship dreams down the drain. Thanks for coming SC. Just another argument for those Pac-10 haters to make in support of the SEC. Did I mention that even Stanford beat the Beavers in their first game of the season. Looks like another Rosebowl appearance for the Trojans this year. Whoopdittydoo…

I was there. Waiting all off-season for this game. THE USC TROJANS hosting the Ohio State Buckeyes. #1 v. #5. Will Beanie Wells play (no)? Will that inexperienced USC offensive line be able to contain the Buckeyes defense? Was Mark Sanchez’ stellar play in week 1 just a fluke? Only one way to find out.

7:00 a.m. PST, College Gameday with Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreet. The fans were there, Trojans, Buckeyes, you name it. We even got some Gators and Cougars. Go figure. The atmosphere was electric. Smack talking all over the place. It was evident that it was going to be a rough night for the fans of one of these two teams. Everyone was waiting for 9:00 a.m. to come around, ready to hear Corso’s pick. What costume was he gonna pull out of his secret bag? Then, as if he could foresee the future, Corso spoke:

Trojans to win!!! See, that’s him in the middle in the Trojans battle gear. From then, it was all down hill for the Buckeyes and their fans. By noon, even the Ohio State Buckeyes’ mascot Brutus was seen attempting suicide. Poor Brute, he never stood a chance. 5:00 p.m., gametime. No Beanie Wells, no chance in hell. Ohio State drives, puts up a field goal, leads 3-0, and… well, that’s it for their highlight reel. SC quarterback Mark Sanchez, 4 tds and 1 pick. RB Joe McKnight, 12 rushes fro 105 yds. Oh yeah, that SC defense, only 30 yards of offense for the Buckeyes in the second half. Thanks for coming. See you next year at the Shoe…

Play of the game, a pick and 48 yards td return by lineback Ray Maualuga to put them up 21-3. They don’t call him “Sting Rey” for nothing. And trust me, this one’s gonna sting Ohio State for at least one year.

Time for the biggest game in college football this season. Time for the biggest game in Trojans’ country since the Rosebowl against Vince Young and the Texas Longhorns. Time for the biggest game in Ohio State Buckeyes history and the Big Ten. Let’s stop this “Beanie Wells is doubtful” bullshit. Everybody in Ohio knows he’s playing. Everybody in LA knows he’s playing. If Jim Tressel needs to con his players and have Beanie show up on Saturday and “pick up” his team as a last minute motivational tool, then he’d better head back to Ohio right now. Enough of the shenanigans, the reverses, the options, the fake injury reports. SC’s ready. The fans are ready to go. I’m gonna be there, right on top of the tunnel. So when SC is done beating the Beanie out of the Well, the fans are gonna razzle the Buckeyes all the way to the locker room. Weanie Wells is going to wish he never got on the plane to LA. He’s gonna wish he redshirted this year.

The key to this game, defense. And who has the best in the corp. in the country? SC DOES!!! Brian Cushing and Ray Maualuga. Heard of them? How about Kevin Ellison and Taylor Mays? Not ringing a bell. Maybe an Everson Griffin? These guys will all be playing in the pros in a year or two. I’m not gonna even get into the offense. Not enough time. Jim Tressel better have a couple (hundred) aces up his sleeve. The flickering reputation of the Big Ten is riding on this game. The Big Ten is weak is what every sports announcer, analyst and frankly anyone with half have been preaching. They haven’t won an important game in years. They’re light years away from the Pac-10, SEC, and Big 12. Some might even say the WAC is a tougher conference (yes, even the WAC). As for the Buckeyes, no pressure ladies. This weekend will come and go. You’ll be in the same position as you were, an overrated team that can’t win an important game. Next time, try scheduling a game with a team in your league, like…Youngstown State or something. I hear they’re the next up and comers.

If you were worried about the USC Trojans this year, worry no more. On Saturday, the Trojans traveled east towards Virginia to play the Cavaliers; and boy did they play them, to a tune of 52-7. This is the best I’ve seen the Trojans in 2 years. Sure, the Cavaliers are not a top-ranked team, or even a ranked team for that matter, but hey, they were supposed to put up a bigger fight than that. The running game was rolling, 218 yds and 4 tds. The passing game led by QB Mark Sanchez couldn’t have been more precise, 338 yds, 3 tds and one pick (which wasn’t his fault by the way). The defense, well, they showed by they’re the best in the country. Next up, Ohio State in two weeks. As for the Buckeyes, sure they spanked Youngstown State, but at the expense of their Heisman RB Beanie Wells. I hope this won’t slow him down for the showdown in So. Cal. in 2 weeks. We don’t want any excuses.

Is anyone worried about the USC Trojans’ upcoming season or is it just me? Ranked #3 in the AP poll, everyone’s talking about how SC will end up #1 in the country by the end of the year. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a die-hard homer SC fan. But with injuries to their starting quarterback Mark Sanchez and Reggie Bush-wannabe running back Joe McKnight, I’m sweatin’. They start off the season at Virginia which is gonna be no gimme, then come back home to face #2 Ohio State (game of the year b/t/w). Just when you think it’s over, they have to travel to Oregon State to face a Beaver team which has given them some trouble over the past few years. Then they host #21 ranked Oregon (true, they’re not as good as last year) and finish off the 5-game stretch with stud QB Rudy Carpenter and the Arizona State Sun Devils. If they can get through these 5 games unscathed, they should easily breeze through the remainder of the schedule, which includes a total of 0 ranked teams. The only other team in the country with a schedule as hard is Georgia (LSU, Florida, South Carolina, Az St. etc.) These two teams are the best in the nation. They play in the toughest conferences. It would be a shame if they didn’t meet each other in the title game so the Trojans could wax UGA. WE ARE…SC, WE ARE…SC!!!

So Aurthur Blank and the Atlanta Falcons need a new head coach and who better to go after than USC’s Pete Carroll. I’ll try to keep this short and sweet… Carroll doesn’t need the money, but doesn’t everyone have a price? Yes, the Trojans have set the standard in college football for the last 6 years. Yes, he has won 2 National Championships. Yes, he has won a record 6 Pac-10 titles. Yes, he just completed back to back Rose Bowl victories. And yes….. they may be ranked number 1 when the season starts next year. But hasn’t he done all he could do? Sure he could continue to win a few more years, but isn’t it all downhill from here? He has set the bar so high that anything but a National Championship at USC is somewhat of a disappointment. As an SC and college football fan, I would hate to see him leave. He is great for the school and even better for college football. But unfortunately folks, whether it’s the Falcons or someone else, I think the inevitable is near.